When does a landlord have to file Form 4562?

When Form 4562 is required

The Form 4562 instructions list depreciation on property placed in service during the tax year as a reason to file, and depreciation on listed property regardless of when it was placed in service. Publication 527 repeats the first rule in its Schedule E chapter. Listed property includes vehicles, which is why an owner who uses a car for rental trips may still attach the form every year.

• New this year: a building you bought and rented, a new roof, new appliances or new carpet.
• Listed property: a vehicle you claim, even if bought years ago.
• A year with nothing new placed in service and no listed property: the form is generally not the reason to file, though your preparer carries the yearly depreciation to line 18 from earlier schedules.

What changes after the first year

The first year does the work: you decide the cost, the land and building split, the recovery period and the date placed in service. Later years follow the same schedule. Residential rental property is depreciated over 27.5 years, so a depreciation schedule kept by your preparer or in your books does the repeating.

Example a made-up owner places a $200,000 building (land excluded) in service in January, then buys a $1,200 refrigerator in March. The first year includes both on Form 4562, because both were placed in service that year. In the next year, with no new purchases, there is generally nothing new to enter, and the building and refrigerator continue on their schedules.

What to keep for every asset

1. What it is and which property it belongs to.
2. The date placed in service, meaning ready and available for rent.
3. The cost, including closing costs that are part of basis.
4. The land and building split for a building.
5. Receipts for improvements, kept apart from repairs.

If depreciation was missed in earlier years, see our guide to forgotten depreciation and Form 3115.

Common Form 4562 problems

• Putting every purchase on depreciation. Small items may qualify for the de minimis safe harbor, covered in our guide, and are expensed instead.
• Starting depreciation when you close instead of when the unit is ready and available for rent.
• Forgetting the vehicle. A vehicle you claim for rental trips is listed property and needs the form in every year you claim it.
• Losing the paper trail. A refrigerator bought in 2026 and sold in 2031 needs a cost and a date, and the invoice is the cheapest proof.

A depreciation schedule is a short table: asset, date placed in service, cost, recovery period and the amount deducted each year. Keep it with the property's books and add a row each time something is placed in service. Your preparer can build it from the invoices you saved, so the most useful thing you can do all year is keep improvements and equipment separate from repairs.

Questions to bring to your tax preparer

• Which items this year were placed in service, and on what date for each?
• Which small purchases can be expensed instead of depreciated?
• Do I claim a vehicle, and if so what log do I need?
• Is there a prior year with depreciation that was never claimed?

How DoorKeeping handles it

DoorKeeping keeps improvements apart from repairs in each property's books, with the bill attached, so your preparer can build the schedule. It does not prepare Form 4562. DoorKeeping gives no tax advice. Your tax preparer decides how a rule applies to you, and your state may add its own rules.

Sources

1. IRS, Instructions for Form 4562, read Oct 30, 2026
2. IRS, Publication 527, Residential Rental Property, read Oct 30, 2026
3. IRS, Instructions for Schedule E (Form 1040), 2025, read Oct 30, 2026

Questions

Do I attach Form 4562 every year?

The instructions require it for depreciation on property placed in service that year and for listed property in any year. Otherwise it is generally not needed.

Where does depreciation appear on Schedule E?

On line 18, Depreciation expense or depletion.

What is the first year date for depreciation?

The date the property is placed in service, which means ready and available for rent.